Team Buckeye features Veterinary Medicine team captain

Dr. Michelle Harcha, director, Professional Development Education, is being featured for her support of Pelotonia, a grassroots effort to raise money for The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute. Her commitment to fighting cancer drove her to become a team captain for the College of Veterinary Medicine. Her enthusiasm for the event, as well as her personal story, led organizers to choose her as a Team Buckeye spokeswoman. Team Buckeye members include riders, virtual riders, and volunteers participating in Pelotonia who are students, faculty, staff and alumni of The Ohio State University.

“I am honored to be recognized this way,” said Dr. Harcha. “As a breast cancer survivor, I believe in the power of research to help us find a cure for all species. And I know personally how much the support of this effort means to people and animals fighting this disease. This is also a great opportunity to recognize cancer research being done in veterinary medicine.”

Since its founding in 2009, Pelotonia has raised $25.4 million for cancer research at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Instisute. Established by Dr. Michael Caligiuri, CEO of the James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute, and cancer survivor Tom Lennox, Pelotonia offers riders of all levels to come together as a community and support cancer research. The ride itself features six routes of varying lengths, beginning in Pickerington and Columbus, with the longest routes (75 and 100 miles) ending in Gambier for the finish celebration.

To donate to the College of Veterinary Medicine Peloton, visit their Pelotonia profile.

Founded in 1885, The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine is ranked fifth in the nation and includes more than 1,000 faculty, staff and students in the Departments of Veterinary Biosciences, Veterinary Clinical Sciences, and Veterinary Preventive Medicine. The Veterinary Medical Center is one of the largest specialty referral centers in the world, with more than 35,000 farm, equine, and companion animal patients each year. A nationally-recognized ambulatory practice and teaching unit in Marysville, Ohio provides farm animal experience to every veterinary student, and the Food Animal Health Research Program in Wooster, OH focuses on detection, control, and prevention of disease. Located on the only campus in the country with a comprehensive medical center offering seven health sciences colleges, we admit up to 162 veterinary students per class, and offer a new comprehensive graduate program in Veterinary and Comparative Medicine as well as a unique Master’s degree in Veterinary Public Health, in partnership with the College of Public Health. http://vet.osu.edu.